Which other Country uses the Cedi? – Bank of Ghana Opinion/Feature | 11 January 2012 20:48 CET Which other Country uses the Cedi? – Bank of Ghana By Gabriel Dzisoo Previous | Next It has been over three and half years now since the redenomination exercise came and gone. For the subsequent first six months, Ghanaians had to differentiate between the old cedi being taken out and the Ghana cedi being welcomed. The old cedi ceased to be legal tender from the first of January 2008 and except for politicians who want to shock us by still mentioning the financial losses they caused the country by quoting the figures in the old cedi, no one else cares. But surprisingly, after the phasing out of the old currency, the Bank of Ghana has not legally reverted the name of our currency back to simply, the CEDI. You write a check at any commercial bank and state 'cedi' and you are told to insert 'Ghana' before the cedi.

You ask whether another country also uses the cedi or which country's currency is the cedi, and no one is able to give you a logical answer than “That is what Bank of Ghana has instructed us to do”. Many people know that the name 'dollar' for a currency is common in many countries. We have the US dollar, Australian dollar and Singaporean dollar. The same goes for the 'franc': French franc, CFA franc, Rwandan franc and Swiss franc just to name a few. In all these cases, the currencies are different in value except in name. I will be grateful if this article is brought to the attention of the Bank of Ghana authorities to either tell the Ghanaian populace which other country(ies) are using the 'cedi' to necessitate its differentiating when writing cheques to cash at the bank or elsewhere, or just do the appropriate thing by reverting the name of our currency to cedi.

Gabriel Dzisoo 9 African Countries With Stronger Currencies Than The Rand - Travelstart Blog 9 African Countries With Stronger Currencies Than The Rand 14 April 2014 Estimated reading time: 3 minutes 554 Facebook Twitter Email The Rand has had a lot of flack for its devaluation over the past couple of years. I already wrote about a few countries worse off than us , so now let’s take a look at the other end of the spectrum: African countries who’s currencies are stronger than ours. Now before you feel the urge to launch into a News24-comments-section-style-SA-self-loathing tirade, check out the reasons listed in the description of each, many of them have little merit to their strength. Botswanan Pula – R1.20 An obvious one is Botswana. The Pula has been stronger than the Rand for some years now and the country’s economy and political structure is often lauded as a shining example of how an African democracy can work. 1 Pula will cost you around R1.20, though this is not as bad as it was in around 2004 where it would have have cost you 20 cents extra.

Egyptian Pound – R1.50 Another example which has long been stronger than the Rand, Egypt, despite all its political turmoil has been able to retain a lot of its country’s currency value. 1 Egyptian Pound will cost you around R1.50. Libyan Dinar – R8.53 Yet another country in political turmoil with a strong currency is Libya. Perhaps it’s oil which is keeping things afloat but one Libyan Dinar will set you back around R8.53 currently, making it the strongest currency in Africa. Tunisia Dinar – R6.65 Recovering from its status as the birthplace of the Arab Spring, Tunisia’s Dinar gained almost 20% against the Rand this year. One Tunisian Dinar will now cost you around R6.65. Moroccan Dirham – R1.29 Rubbing shoulders with Europe, Morocco is in the news as much for illegal immigrants trying to smash down the border is shares with Spain as it is for its exotic culture and beautiful scenery. Morocco’s currency wasn’t always as strong against the Rand, in fact it was as recently at October 2012 when the Rand was more valuable.

1 Moroccan Dirham will cost you R1.29 currently. Ghanaian Cedi – R3.79 A very surprising example of a strong African currency, Ghana’s Cedi. Ghana is well known for its extensive natural resources, namely Gold from it’s Ashanti region (hence the Anglo-Ashanti gold company famous in South Africa). This one is actually a cheat though, the Cedi is actually in its 3rd rendition under the same name as the currency has been revalued a couple of times. The most recent revaluation was 2007 and it’s lost almost 50% of it’s value against the Rand since then, so the current rate of R3.79 for 1 Cedi shouldn’t last long. Sudanese Pound – R1.85 Another story very similar to the Ghanaian one is that of the Sudanese Pound. Revalued successively during its post-colonial period, the most recent revaluation came in 2011 following the independence of the oil rich Southern half of the country which became South Sudan. The Sudanese Pound is now worth R1.85, but likely not for long.

Eritrean Nakfa – R1.01 A country you probably haven’t heard from before, it split from Ethiopia in the early 90’s but has a currency, roughly on the same value as ours. This is only a recent development though since the beginning of 2014 and is as a result of the currency being pegged to the US Dollar. 1 Nakfa will cost you R1.01. Zambian Kwacha – R1.73 The country formally known as the colony of Northern Rhodesia has sadly never been known as an economic success story and at a stage had an exchange rate of 1 US Dollar = 5120 Kwacha. The currency was revalued in January 2013 and until recently 1 Kwacha cost over R2, today 1 Kwacha buys you only R1.73. Related posts: Finance101 April 14, 2014 Nick, I think you should look up the definition of what it is that makes a currency ‘strong’. Given your argument above, the Rand is ‘stronger’ than the Japanese Yen (about 9.5 Yen per Rand).

‘Purchasing Power Parity’ is probably another concept worth reading up on Nick Paul April 14, 2014 Good point Finance101, that could be a good topic for a future post. Really here what I was interested in was that so many people make such a big deal out of the value of the Rand and kick up such a stink about it, when the reasons behind the supposed “strength” of the other currencies shows that this really doesn’t mean much at all. Revaluing a currency 3 times which results in it being more valuable than the Rand doesn’t mean much, especially when inflation etc is sending your economy and currency value up sh*t creek. All in all, we have it a lot better here than (almost?) every country in the list above.

Albert palombo April 17, 2014 The only meaningful comparison is where you compare the cost of the average earner’s basket of purchasses in each of the countries and apply a correction factor another useful measure is to calculate that cost as a percentage of that group’s average earnings to give an indication of their standard of living Bella April 14, 2014 Tomeasito September 28, 2015 You guys are complicating this issue. Currency is an item on its own and is sold to those who want it. The demand of currency gives it value. yes there are a lot of other factors mentioned above, but all of these, will either give rise or downfall of demand for the currency. it is not just a single factor, but all of the factors affect demand and supply of the currency. Travellers, investors who want to invest in the country etc to name a few buyers of currency. So yes most stable oil producing economies will attract investors who will by currency more than Gold and diamond. dean April 15, 2014 Just because a value is placed on a currency doesn’t necessarily change its value.

For example the Zambian Kwatcha is the value it is after they remodelled the currency and took a fair few zeros off the end of the large number. This I found out after travelling there about a year or so ago. sarah April 17, 2014 Nick you clearly haven’t been to any of the countries in the list above. Have it better in what sense, when SA has now the 2nd strongest economy in Africa after Nigeria but still the largest rich-poor gap in the world??? The people using those currencies at least don’t experience the depths of poverty experienced in South Africa. They clearly have better value for money, not only in currency but in quality of living standards. Even countries with weaker currencies experience far better living standards. Rand is nothing to ride home about. Nick Paul April 22, 2014 Hi Sarah, you caught me out! No, I haven’t been to any of these countries. The purpose of this post was to highlight that the strength of a currency really doesn’t tell us much about the strength of a country’s economy. South Africans love to hate the Rand, constantly moaning about how weak it is and that they can’t travel on it.

I wanted to point out that yes, there are African countries with stronger currencies but many of them don’t have merit for having a stronger currency. Perhaps I could have focussed more on the actual differences between the countries but it would have for a very long read. Perhaps an idea for next time. menzo April 18, 2014 What make a currency strong? We have minerals in SA but our currency keep dropping. Libya was in political turmoil yet their currency is still stable Andrew Mungherera April 19, 2014 Visit some of these countries and find how the majority are better economically empowered than the majority in SA. It is then you realize who is really in the ‘Dark’ AVincentZo May 20, 2014 I still cling to my SA rather than go and conduct a physical investigation of the condition of African economy. I think life is better and more enjoyable under the Rand umbrella than anywhere in this dark continent. Currency strength should be meassured by how that currency whether politically or religiously accommodates and tolerates diversity.

If christians are abducted and forced into other forms of religion, left wing political activists are bombed and tortured, and so on goes the rest of African tales, then the strenght of the currency boasted about discourages foreign investment which to some degree promotes real economic growth. In my view, SA Rand is much stronger than any of the 9 mentioned above. ken phiri kazawara June 24, 2014 I am a Zambian citizen,have stayed in South africa for two years,the level of poverty is to high than in my country or botswana,southafrica is only known for its historical people outside they think like its a country of full of opoturnity to if you came here that’s when you realise that your country is better than these place.I support nick zambian curency is more powerful than rand the only thing you can came and to in southafrica is to buy goods cause they are more cheap than in my country if I go and sell their I make more profit.

Zawa Al May 21, 2015 I travel to Zambia often , so many things wrong there although I must admit there has been some improvements but surely can’t compare to SA , infrastructure is lagging behind by decades , per capita is abysmal , economy is largely informal natural remnants of severe dererioration over many years , unemployment is high , corruption evident just as SA does but to even think anything is better about living in Zambia , the currency has benefited from revaluation , lord know if it can be sustained .

I live in SA not from SA but I love SA , ken phiri kazawara June 24, 2014 I am a Zambian citizen,have stayed in South africa for two years,the level of poverty is to high in southafrica than Zambia, southafrica is only known for its historical people outside they think like its a country of full of opoturnity but if you came here that’s when you realise that your country is better than southafrica.I support nick zambian curency is more powerful than rand the only thing you can came and do in southafrica is to buy goods and go and sell them in your country cause they are cheap,if I go and sell in Zambia I make more profit. Zawa MXOLISI July 13, 2014 hi ken phiri kazawara, you are really funny lol. You claim to think zambia is better than south africa yes? Would you explain why we get people from your country and other african countries everywhere in the streets of south africa? We are the best place to live in, in south africa i tell you mate!

I don’t think there is any african country that would say they have alot of south africans trying to make a living there. Guess that explains which country is of best preference yes? zozo August 9, 2014 strange enough our brothers from the the african continent are floking down to our country yet claiming their currency being strong , if that so why cant they stay in their countries Lesgo August 12, 2014 Hi Mxolisi you are wrong there mate Botswana is much much better.though in Botswana Batswana are nearly 2.2 million and half a million are foreigners mostly from South Africa,Nigeria,Zimbabwe……Batswana don’t walk the streets just visit Gaborone. Al May 21, 2015 MX I agree with you , nothing the guy says is fact , I’m not from SA but travel into the region and across Africa a lot , currency values mean nothing at all , standard of living and basic access to services has a greater impact and SA particularly shines in that area , yes there is abject poverty in some sectors but .

even that level outperforms poverty levels in most African countries … Some of the comments made rather uninformed and quite frankly unnecessary Mr shange July 28, 2014 a billion Rand budget which is 10 times bigger than that of Zambia tells of how powerful our economy is…u budget on what u make….so all others can spew bile about their currencies being strong but Rand is still up there… Moyana November 27, 2014 I ‘ve been to most countries in Africa, including the ones listed above. Honestly speaking, life in South Africa is far much better as compared to any of the African countries… including Nigeria! South Africans keep complaining but they have no idea that they are far much better than any African nation out there, as most countries still have most of their citizens living below the poverty line. The value of a currency really means nothing. One important factor to look at is not only the so-called “buying power”, but also something economists call “GDP per Capita”. I am not an economist but I can attempt to elaborate GDP per Capita as the average amount of money that a country can equally share among its citizens.

Nigeria was recently declared Africa’s strongest economy, reposition South Africa and the second. But how do these two nations’ GDP per Capita display themselves? For a broader understanding of this GDP per Capita concept, I can explain it using an analogy: Mr. Nickelson, a polygamist of 3 wives and 21 children has a 5 hectare farm that can produce 50 tons of grain every year. Another family of 3 children fathered by Mr. Courtes with only one wife, has only a 2-hectare-sized farm that can only produce 20 tons of grain per year. Looking at the above, we lack no doubt that Mr. Nickelson has a bigger grain reserve than Mr. Courtes. However, looking at the sizes of the 2 families, we see that Mr. Nickelson can give only 2 tons of grain to each of his wives and children, whereas his friend, Mr. Courtes, can have himself, his wife and children load 4 tons each!

Now back to our GDP per Capita concept, Nigeria has a population of 160 million with a total economy of USD580 billion, and South Africa has a population of 56 million with an economy valued at USD350 billion. Now with the amount of money that Nigeria has, each citizen can equally have USD3,625.00, and South Africa can give to each and every citizen in Mzantsi, an amount equivalent to USD6,250.00 – almost double that a Nigerian can claim! Then, a new question now arises: what effect does the value of a currency has to the economy, and what effect does an economy have to a nation? Only after we have answers to the above question shall we understand the spectrum of economics. Nadia December 24, 2014 Those that are saying the Kwacha is weaker than the rand. Try knock of a few zeros off the zip dollar and see if the zip dollar will be equally strong. The zambian Kwacha is the only currency that has once been stronger than the British pound. And is one of the most improving currency even after a few changes have caused our economy to be challenged.

Other than that we are getting there. Most south African stores are now flooding our malls cause of the currency here. You sell clothes at an exact exchange rate example R450=k450 and yet the kwacha is double the value hence profitable to you. South Africa rand R100=k60=$10. Shabbier April 11, 2015 All the above African countries have much smaller economies than South Africa. Most of them are basically poor countries compared to S.A. How is it that the S.A Rand is much weaker than their currencies. It just makes no sense. What’s pulling the Rand down! Is it the incompetence of our government or bad economic growth? I think it’s both but still it’s rather strange that the Rand is weaker then the currencies of the countries mentioned. Can someone please explain!!! Hi Cornelius, Thanks for getting in touch. The current Rate of exchange is: BWP1 = R1.26, so the Botswana Pula is still stronger then the Rand. The Pula has been stronger than the Rand for some years now and the country’s economy and political structure is often lauded as a shining example of how an African democracy can work.

I found the following info which is pretty interesting: Since independence, Botswana has had the highest average economic growth rate in the world, averaging about 9% per year from 1966 to 1999. Growth in private sector employment has averaged about 10% per annum over the first 30 years of independence. At the start of the 21st century, however, the economy of Botswana stagnated up until the early 2010s when it registered for the first time since the economic boom a GDP growth up above the 6-7% target. Botswana is also commended for the site of Africa’s longest and among the world’s longest economic booms (which almost surpassed that in Asia’s largest economies). The relatively high quality of the country’s statistics means that these figures are likely to be quite accurate. The government has consistently maintained budget surpluses and has extensive foreign exchange reserves. Botswana’s impressive economic record has been built on a foundation of diamond mining, prudent fiscal policies, international financial and technical assistance, and a cautious foreign policy. It is rated the least corrupt country in Africa, according to international corruption watchdog, Transparency International.

By one estimate, it has the fourth highest gross national income at purchasing power parity in Africa, giving it a standard of living around that of Mexico and Turkey. motlatsi August 13, 2015 If SA is bad in a sense of poverty, why all these people from other african countries with strong currencies leave their strong currency countries and decide to come to South Africa where they say poverty is like breathing in and out? Why Woman of Neighbouring cross boarders illigally just to get best medical service for their pregnancy and want their kids to be born in south africa so that they can have full citizen rights? Because SA is the best in africa. law August 21, 2015 currencies mean nothing an south africa is the best country with the best economy ,just that nw we r strugling a little bit because of china s economy ,remember china is the only country that purchase most of our products Very true, South Africa is a land of opportunity. Beautiful country we live in 🙂 chiba October 22, 2015 People here have very little information about countries. i have stayed in most southern african countries, exept few like angola, swaziland, mozambique.

I have been to south africa, zimbabwe, malawi, zambia, nambia, botswana, just to mention a few. south africa is the most industrialized and good infastracture, that does not mean its economy is the best, if you look at there budget, yes its big but its not catering every person in there country, south africa was good years back, but now things are failing. there so many south african in other countries including zimbabwe, botswana, nambia and zambia. so you guys are you telling we are should chase them out. its be reasonable when are taliking about other countries. botswana is good and stable but for the past few years the counrty standards are going down. its not that peaceful. the media is highly sensered. there is so much crime but you will never see it in the paper, just a few stories here and there. zambia is there another with the only problem being political leaders and corruption, mind you south africa is worse then zambia when it comes to corruption. but the country is growing faster then almost all the countries in the southern africa. zambia made sure that each and every country in africa is independent.

there so many south africans, zimbabwens, congoless, malawins, angolans. rwandess, and many other africans, european and asians, but you will never hear this country go to the streets to burn people alive. thats how peacefull that country is. zimbabwe is good there only problem is the leadership. but the crime rate has gone up. so when you are comparing the countries without visting and staying there, you might think your country is the best, but in the real world others are better then yours. having your country being well advertisered does not mean its the best. the other thing you need to look at is the budgeting balancing with the population and economy. every party of this africa is the same. africa is africa every single part of it. dont lough at other countries yours might be worse. good day every. we are all africans. Hamas November 11, 2015 I see!! Interesting comments! I live in SA from west Africa. Facts are facts! The are many opportunities and riches in south Africa but…hey! Poverty in SA is toooo bad as compared to west Africa!

Amongst the rural blacks in SA is in eye sore! Probably as Bible has “With knowledge you have riches”! No one can be rich in absolute ignorance and that is perishing black south Africans in the land of honey and milk! Thanks for getting in touch. Living standards in Botswana are high by African standards, but vary considerably across the country. As in many countries, there are widely different standards of living in Botswana between the rich and poor. I’ve found the following on the internet which mentions some interesting facts you welcome to read through this. Sam April 3, 2016 Having good infrastructure is not an indicator of a county’s economic strength and that’s the mistake most black South Africans make. The South African rand has fallen and the economy is at the brink of total collapse. There’s no African country that is growing at 0.8% like South Africa, so that tells you a lot. The myth of South Africa being the best in the continent is what fuels xenophobia by black South Africans who after 21 years have forgotten how full they were in our countries. Corruption and education here are also among the worst in Africa. South Africans should just accept that the spotlight has passed to other countries.

Max April 16, 2016 I think we should separate the issues on here. If we want to discuss or compare any African country to SA we should make a distinction. Yes the South African Rand has fallen compared to the countries in question but it is not true to say those countries are better than SA. SA is far much better than some countries on the list and this can be seen from the citizens flocking to SA for greener pastures. SA is better many ways except they have most likely the highest crime rate still! Mandla Mnguni May 16, 2016 Interesting conversation about African countries, their currencies and standard of living. At times it is good for a currency to be weak, as long as this leads to more production, tourism and further investments. Most of the countries in Africa have Government controlled currencies with the result that investors can’t get their returns out of the countries concerned. They cannot even use the money to buy stock from abroad. Nigeria, Angola, Ghana etc. Long term this becomes a problem, investors pull out. South Africa however has a free market economy (value of the rand is determined by what we sell and what we buy that includes stock market products).

At the moment the rand is weak because (1) There is a general risk associated with third world countries. (2) There is a general mismanagement of the economy by Government, that includes finance minister Nene’s removal. (3) The huge imports of food due to draught. (4) The general depreciation of our minerals due to weak demand from China. Most of the above reasons are temporal, so we don’t need to panic. A correction is coming soon as long as we continue producing and we attract direct foreign investments. Zuma is not going to rule for ever(at least the constitution does not allow him to do so), if he does we are doom. With regards to whether South Africa is worse than the other 9 countries with stronger currencies, I don’t think so except for Botswana maybe(because they have few people) but we still have better road infrastructure, better universities, better manufacturing sector(they buy most of their products from South Africa). I have been to all the countries mentioned above except Egypt). Non of them can economically match the South African economy. Even the gap between the rich and poor is compensated by the fact that in SA there is Old age grant, children grant, which is non existant in the rest of Africa.

It makes a difference, just that it might also be the reason why some rural communities have stopped subsistence farming. I have travelled most of Africa and I spent 5 years in Cuba and 1 year in Germany. Those talk of Zambia being better have only been to rich sections of cities. You can find people using charcoal for cooking in some townships of Livingston. Matoti May 20, 2016 I get you guys all of your right and wrong. What I want to know is,is it possible to have one Afro currency,and one Afro travelling document ? So we can be a one united Africa! Innovations July 20, 2016 Well they can say whatever they want to, but they have now crowded mzansi yet the claim to be better than us. One day we will have an intelligent president and all this nonsense will stop. We love you africans outside RSA even though you are mocking us.

mxm MICAH September 9, 2016 South Africa is a type of United States of America in Africa.I am a Nigerian,but there is something about South Africa that makes it stand out as the best in Africa.”IT IS THE LAND OF GREAT OPPORTUNITIES” Zawa Ken Phiri September 17, 2016 2 years ago, I commended here regarding SA economy. Many here you had to argue with me. I was in SA 3 months ago, SA economy as gone even more down. The prices of goods have risen so much, the Rand is losing its value to a dollar. The country is facing electricity shortage that, their is an increase of load shedding, now after all your commenting regarding praising SA, are you aware that we are supplying you electricity. Zambia still stands with a strong currency to US dollar. Zambian kwacha today is buying $1 at K7 to 9. While rand is buying $1 at R14 to R16, now who is better? Never argue from something you don’t understand education is important, the level of illiteracy is to high in SA, thus only few understands this issues.

Ba mfwetu somuchela Mzansi yapelile manje, zonke izinto zapelile, muyashonepa. Ken Phiri Chigbogu Eze September 23, 2016 Infrastructure in south africa is okey but poverty their is second to non.Many west african came with high hope,but they were caught by poverty beyond their imagination”but going back home is not as easy as you think.Strong currency and economy is nothing with out improving the livies of the people. Phofolo E Kgolo Africa Just Says "Nein" To The US Dollar: Time To Go Short The USDZMK And USDGHC? | Zero Hedge Africa Just Says "Nein" To The US Dollar: Time To Go Short The USDZMK And USDGHC? Aug 13, 2012 9:19 AM 0 SHARES Last week we presented the aftermath of the very much unannounced "Conference of Beijing" as a result of which Africa has been slowly but surely converting to a continent controlled almost exclusively by China.

However, there was one thing missing: even as China has been virtually the sole source of infrastructure funding in Africa, the continent has long been a legacy dollar preserve, which obviously means renminbi penetration and replacement would be problematic to say the least. As it turns out, this too is rapidly changing: as the WSJ reports , Africa is increasingly just saying "nein" to the USD. "African countries are trying to shoo the U.S. dollar away, even if it means threatening to throw people who use greenbacks in jail. Starting next year, Angola will require oil and gas companies to pay tax revenue and local contracts in kwanza, its currency, rather than dollars. Mozambique wants companies to exchange half of their export earnings for meticais, hoping to pull more of the wealth in vast coal and natural-gas deposits into the domestic economy. And Ghana is seeking similar ways to reinforce "the primacy of the domestic currency," after the cedi plummeted more than 17% against the dollar in the first six months of this year. The sternest steps come from Zambia, a copper-rich country in southern Africa where the central bank has banned dollar-denominated transactions.

Offenders who are "quoting, paying or demanding to be paid or receiving foreign currency" can face a maximum 10 years in prison, the central bank said in a two-page directive in May." Is it time to dump the EUR in hopes of a short covering rally that continues to be elusive (just as Germany wants) and buy Zambian Kwachas instead? We will wait for Tom Stolper to advise Goldman clients to sell the Zambian currency first, but at this rate the USDZMK may well be the most profitable currency pair of the next 3-6 months. Why is Africa angry at the one allmighty Greenback? The moves aim to strengthen thinly traded currencies and steer more capital into isolated financial markets. But the new rules are an abrupt change for foreign and local companies used to doing business in U.S. dollars. In other words, Africa is finally pushing for its own capital markets, rudimentary as they may be. One wonders just who may be pulling the strings behind this very quiet but very crucial development.

But one thing that is certain is that the traditional operations for legacy companies in Africa is about to change for good: "There will be an adjustment period," said Mike Keenan, an African currencies analyst at Absa Capital, a South African subsidiary of Barclays PLC. "But the story with Africa and commodities has been one where the proceeds kind of circumvent the country. These authorities are trying to clamp down on that." Zambia's central bank sees upside to a strong and liquid kwacha. The move to promote the currency's use gives authorities leverage over monetary policy they lacked without control of the dominant market currency. The crackdown also could bring local banks new business in hedging instruments and foreign-exchange transactions. "The kwacha is legal tender," said Caeser Siwale, chief executive in Zambia for Renaissance Capital, an investment bank. "There tends to be a different yardstick for us," with big companies expecting small economies like Zambia to live with a reliance on foreign currency that would never happen in Europe or China, he added. In Zambia, the measures appear to be working. Heightened demand for kwacha pushed the currency to its highest level in more than a year in July, when it reached 4,640 to the dollar.

It has slipped a bit since then. So why go long the ZMK (and short the USD)? Here's why. Fueling the demand were foreign-owned manufacturing and mining companies racing to acquire kwacha even as they asked the government to reconsider the policy. The companies complain it make operations more expensive and cumbersome. "It might be hard to find kwacha when you need it," said Frederick Bantubonse, general manager of Zambia's Chamber of Mines. Mining companies also are worried about the cost of hedging their copper production against kwacha volatility. The group has appealed to government to limit the types of transactions affected by the move. In the long run, strengthening the kwacha by decree will take less time than demonstrating political stability and a commitment to controlling inflation, said John K. Wakeman-Linn, mission chief for Zambia at the International Monetary Fund. And while it is unlikely that the Kwacha has to fear becoming a carry currency, the short USDZMK may be at best a short-term trade. At least until China reveals its full plans. In the long run, strengthening the kwacha by decree will take less time than demonstrating political stability and a commitment to controlling inflation, said John K.

Wakeman-Linn, mission chief for Zambia at the International Monetary Fund. "I don't think it's necessarily an adverse policy, but I don't see it providing a lot of additional long-term confidence in the kwacha, either," he said. "Regulation like this cannot substitute for policies that generate confidence in the market." Those who are leery of going long just one African country can diversify their holdings. Into Ghanaian Cedis, aka GHS (1 year chart of USDGHC here ). Policy makers elsewhere in Africa are watching Zambia. Ghana, another fast-growing African economy with rich mineral deposits and a nascent consumer class, also is seeking to boost its currency's value. Since May, Ghana's banks have had to keep all of their deposits at the central bank in cedi, rather than a mix of cedi and U.S. dollars. The switch encourages banks to seek deposits in cedi rather than foreign currency, according to Millison Narh, a deputy governor of the Bank of Ghana.

The central bank's pro-cedi policies aim to make life easier for people like Sterre Mkatini, who recently lugged a backpack filled with $8,000 worth of local currency to a nearby bank to pay one year's rent upfront. Many landlords demand such payments to sidestep high inflation. Of course, there are risks: Kwaku Asente Addo, a cashier at Penta Forex Bureau, isn't sure Ghana's government can or will do much to purge the greenback. "They can't do that; they're bluffing," he said. Maybe they are. But if, indeed, China is pushing the strings, maybe they aren't. Finally, here is the one currency to really watch: A central bank ceiling on over-the-counter dollar transactions at banks has sent Ghana's class of China-bound traders into street-side foreign-exchange bureaus that normally cater to fanny-pack-clad tourists. Chinese importers often show up just before flights back to China desperate to buy $100,000. How long until China will welcome all African transactions to settle in CNY? Either way, keep a close eye on Africa. Things are heating up there quickly.

Ghana limits dollar transactions to protect cedi - BBC News BBC News Ghana limits dollar transactions to protect cedi 6 February 2014 Close share panel Image copyright AFP Image caption The cedi has lost almost a quarter of its value over the past year Ghana has defended its decision to limit foreign exchange withdrawals in a bid to halt the slide in its currency the cedi. Foreign currency account holders have been limited to withdrawals of $10,000 (£6,000), which must be supported by evidence of an overseas trip. The cedi has fallen to a record low in recent days. Central Bank governor Kofi Wampah has also raised interest rates to 18% to attract more investment. Ghana is the latest emerging markets whose currency has fallen recently. The value of the South African rand has hit record lows, while currencies in Turkey and India have also been hit. I command the resurrection of the cedi Archbishop Duncan Williams, Action Faith Chapel Analysts say investors have switched away from emerging markets since the US Federal Reserve scaled back its stimulus programme. Ghana has also been hit by falls in the prices of its two major exports - gold and cocoa.

The cedi has lost about 23% of its value over the past year. Government critics say the problems have been exacerbated by high public spending and mismanagement - charges the government denies. It has started to earn money from offshore oil fields but analysts say much of this is being used to repay foreign loans. The BBC's Sammy Darko in the capital Accra says the freefall of the cedi has led to desperate measures by government and even some of the clergy. Last week, renowned cleric Archbishop Duncan Williams prayed for the national currency to start rising in value. "I command the resurrection of the cedi," he told worshippers at his Action Faith Chapel in Accra. Our correspondent says many Ghanaians are concerned about price rises, which will be made worse by Thursday's interest rate hike. In addition to the limit of foreign exchange withdrawals, Mr Wampah said banks would not be allowed to grant loans in foreign currencies to customers who are only paid in cedis. "The main purpose of this regulation is to ensure that we continue to use the cedi as the legal tender," he said. But one forex trader in Accra told our reporter that the limit would not be effective.

"If someone brings in $20,000 to change, who would turn it down?" asked the trader, who wished to remain anonymous. But Mr Wampah warned forex traders they had to follow the new rules or be "dealt with". "For the forex bureaux, the issues are bordering on anti money-laundering... Ghana was black listed in 2012 because of our laxity." "We also require more identification when purchasing or selling to forex bureaux and we also request them to computerise so that it will be easier for our supervisors to verify what they are doing." He said plain clothes inspectors would be sent to check on the bureaux.

Question: Which African country uses the cedi as its currency?
Answer: Ghana